The Sweet To My Salty
by hana-to-mame
Summary: AU.  Mike and Harvey are freshman undergrads.  Will the stresses compromising their friendship cause them to split?  Or will they be able to work it out? Eventual slash.  Mike/Trevor then Mike/Harvey.
1. Sit

**The Sweet To My Salty (a Suits fanfiction)**

**Rated: T**

**Pairings: Mike/Harvey**

**Summary: AU. Mike and Harvey are freshman undergrads. Will the stresses compromising their friendship cause them to split? Or will they be able to work it out? Eventual slash. Mike/Trevor then Mike/Harvey.**

Chapter 1 - Sit (Posted 13 August 2011)

"I can't believe we're at orientation already!" Mike Ross said excitedly as he walked beside his best friend of five years, Harvey Specter.

"Settle down." Harvey rolled his eyes at him. "You're so excitable."

"I am not." Mike pouted.

"You are. You're like a little puppy, wagging your tail whenever someone gives you a treat."

"Whatever." That was one thing Mike didn't like about his friend, the way he belittled him. But it wasn't always like that, they engaged in back-and-forth insults all the time, so it wasn't like Harvey was just a bully, even though it seemed that way sometimes. And there were times when Harvey crossed the line, offending Mike with words that were harsher than usual. But Mike overlooked it, choosing instead to focus on the good times they'd had together since he transfered to Harvey's school in eighth grade. He'd always been kind of a geek, he was the nerdy guy everyone loved to pick on. But somehow Harvey had ended up sticking up for him, and Mike had clung to him ever since. Sometimes he got the feeling Harvey didn't really want him around, but he never said it, so Mike practically never left his side.

"Come on, don't go all pouty puppy on me, you know I'm only joking."

"Yeah," Mike said, obviously not believing him, "sure you are. But seriously, aren't you even a _little_bit excited? We're in college!"

"We've been taking college courses since junior year, Mike."

"But it's not the same, Harvey!" Mike shouted, once again smiling and excited to be there. "A few classes on top of a high school schedule does not a college student make."

"Oh, so now you're a poet too." Harvey commented.

"Fine, if you're going to be like that. I'll just go sit with someone else." Mike started to walk away from Harvey, but felt a hand on his wrist. Although Mike still felt like he needed Harvey to protect him even now that he was an adult, there were times when he just felt so insignificant standing next to him that he needed to spend some time away.

"Mike, wait."

"No, just leave it," Mike said harshly as he shook Harvey's arm away. "We all know what's going to happen if we sit together."

"What are you talking about?" Harvey asked, raising an eyebrow.

Mike stared at harvey for a moment, deciding on what to say. "You _know_ what I'm talking about."

"No, Mike, I honestly don't." Harvey shook his head.

"The rumors, Harvey. All those rumors from high school."

Harvey blinked, confused. "You think people will call us queer if we sit together?"

"They did in high school."

"And you think it'll follow us here?"

"Yeah," Mike admitted, looking down.

"Come on. We're in college now, people are supposed to be more mature. They're not going to go around calling people fags just for shits and giggles."

"The people here are only a year older than they were in high school, they're not that much more mature."

"So? Even if they do say shit like that, it didn't bother us then, why should it bother us now?"

"It didn't bother you?"

"Nope," Harvey declared proudly. "I know who I am, so it didn't matter what a bunch of future college drop-outs thought of me." Then he looked at Mike, who seemed to be staring at him, his eyes full of a mixture of awe and... sadness. "Why?" he asked softly, putting his hand on Mike's shoulder. "Did it bother you?"

Mike shook Harvey's arm off his shoulder and looked away again, walking toward the auditorium where orientation was being held. "Maybe. It doesn't matter, let's just go."

"No," Harvey said, catching up to him, "I want to know what's wrong."

"Nothing is wrong."

"I'm sorry if it bothered you that much, Mike. I didn't know..."

"It's fine." Mike sighed. "I just didn't like it. But if you didn't have a problem with it, I guess it's not important."

"Of course it's important."

"Since when are my feelings important?" Mike asked honestly. Although Harvey had protected him from day one, he never gave any other indication that he actually cared about Mike. Harvey stayed silent, answering Mike's question without uttering a word. "That's what I thought."

"Mike..." Harvey called out when the shorter boy started walking away from him again. "Where are you going?"

"I told you, I'm sitting by myself. You go sit with your jock friends that you met at summer training, and I'll sit with..."

"You can sit with me." an unfamiliar voice bellowed from behind Mike.

Mike turned around after seeing Harvey glare and purse his lips. "Um... do I know you?"

"Don't think so." the dark-haired man replied. "I just uh... happened to overhear you saying you didn't have anyone to sit with, and I'm alone to, so I thought I'd offer. If you don't want to, though, I understand."

"No." Mike smiled. "I'll sit with you."

"Great." the man smiled and stuck out his hand. "My name's Trevor."

"Mike." he extended his hand and shook Trevor's.

"We'll talk about this later, okay?" Harvey looked pointedly at Mike.

"Yeah. Okay." Mike said, watching Harvey walk over to some burley jocks. He didn't want to go through this without Harvey to protect him. But it was better this way, he told himself. The less torment he was forced to endure, the less Harvey would be forced to come to his rescue, and that would be better for everyone. He knew he was a burden to Harvey, so maybe he could make it up to him by being less of a damsel in distress and more like an actual man who can deal with his own problems.


	2. Roommates

Chapter 2 - Roommates (Posted 26 October 2011)

"I don't like him." Harvey voiced his disapproval as they were setting up their dorm room.

"Who?"

"Your new friend. Trenton. Travis."

"Trevor." Mike reminded him. "And how can you say you don't like him? You only met him for a few seconds."

"I could tell he was sketchy as soon as I saw him."

"Right. Because you read people and everything you say is always correct."

"Exactly." Harvey smirked.

"Seriously?" Mike asked. "He's a nice guy, he sat with me and showed me around campus. You of all people should know how rare it is for someone to actually take an interest in being kind to me instead of harassing me. Can't you just be happy for me?"

"I just don't want you getting into trouble. I've spent the last five years keeping you safe, I don't want you to make all that meaningless by getting mixed up with bad people."

"You're worried about me?"

"I didn't say that."

"You didn't have to."

"Yeah, well, don't let it go to your head."

"Don't worry. I won't."

Harvey glanced at him before going back to making up his side of the room. Although he'd never outright admit it, he hated seeing Mike accept Harvey's indifference so easily. He knew the guy didn't have many people who cared about him, He needed to be showed some affection every once in a while. It was just a shame that the only person he could go to was the least affectionate person in the world. "Are you going to keep hanging around with him?"

"He invited me to a movie marathon his floor is having tonight."

"Are you gonna go?"

Mike paused. "I'm thinking about it. But you know me, I probably won't. He probably only invited me out of politeness." He turned away from Harvey and cringed at himself. He hated when things like that slipped out.

"You should go out and socialize." Harvey told him. "It'd be good for you. Just... be careful, alright?"

Mike shook his head. "Eh, you don't have to worry about me. I'll probably just sit in here all night and read. Unless you'd rather have me leave you alone, then I can go to the library or something."

"Hey, when have I ever asked you to leave me alone?"

"Well, never, but I'm sure there were times when you were annoyed with me."

Harvey chuckled. "I'm always annoyed with you."

"Oh..."

"Lighten up, Mike. Friends annoy each other, it's a fact of life. But I've gotten used to it."

"You've never annoyed me," Mike told him.

"For real?"

Mike nodded, and then snickered as he remembered something. "Well... there was this one time you came over to my house and forced me to watch ten hours of Star Trek episodes."

Harvey cracked a smile. "You _willingly_ sat through it."

"Yeah, yeah."

"You should go."

"Huh?" Mike asked, forgetting what they'd been talking about before.

"You should go to Tristan's movie marathon."

"Trevor. His name is Trevor. And I've already decided I'm not going."

"What?" Harvey was confused. He thought he wanted to go. "Why not?"

"Even if he really does want to hang out with me, his friends probably don't. You know how things usually end up when I try to meet new people, Harvey."

Harvey sighed. "Do you want me to go with you?"

Mike was about to smile and accept, but he caught himself, shaking his head slowly. "No. Don't worry about it. I told you, I just want to stay here and study."

"Classes haven't started yet."

"I know. I want to be ahead of the game."

"You're going," Harvey said, putting his foot down, "and that's final. You can't just hole up in our room and never interact with anyone but me, Mike. I don't want you to become a hermit."

Mike was almost shocked. Harvey had never forced him to hang out with other people. Suggested it? Yes. Encouraged it? Yes. But force it? No. Maybe he really did want to get rid of him. "Oh... ok."

Harvey smiled a little. He didn't want to put Mike in an uncomfortable situation, he just wanted him to have more friends. He wanted him to have more people he could look to for comfort. If that meant sharing him, he'd put up with it for the sake of Mike's well-being. "I'll still go with you."

"You don't have to do that."

"If I don't take you there myself, you probably won't go at all."

"...True enough."

Harvey shook his head. "We're going."

Mike huffed. "Fine."

"When is it?"

"It starts at eight," Mike told him reluctantly. He saw him nod and then they continued to set up in silence. But Mike's mind was anything but silent, it was whirring, contemplating what he'd done to make Harvey want to get rid of him so much that he was willing to personally hand him off to the next person unfortunate enough to be stuck with him.


	3. Movie Night

Chapter 3 - Movie Night (Posted 18 November 2011)

"Mike!" Trevor greeted happily. "It was getting late, I didn't think you'd show."

Mike smiled shyly. "Well, here I am."

Trevor returned the smile, clapping his hands against Mike's back as he gave him a manly hug. "And you brought a friend," he said, eyeing Harvey.

"Yeah..." Mike said, although he wasn't sure 'friend' was the right word to describe Harvey anymore. Maybe it never was in the first place. "This is Harvey."

Harvey and Trevor glared at each other, appearing to size each other up as if preparing for an immanent fight.

"Well, the more the merrier, I guess." Trevor smiled again. "There's food and soda and stuff over there, so go help yourselves. Then sit down and enjoy the show."

"Thanks." Mike tried to smile, although for some reason he just felt like throwing up. Trevor walked away and started talking to a group of guys. "Harvey," he turned to look at him, "you don't have to stay with me. I know you'd rather be out with someone else..."

"Oh? And who would that be?"

"I don't know, anyone. I just... I know you don't want to be here with me right now, so if you want to leave, I'll be okay."

"Mike, I don't want to leave. Why do you keep acting like I don't want to be around you."

"I didn't say you don't want to be around me, I was just saying _in__case_ you didn't want to be around me, I won't be upset. I just don't want you to feel like you have to stay with me."

"I don't want to leave." Harvey repeated. "I said I'd come with you because I _wanted_ to."

"Okay. I know you're lying, but okay." Mike took a seat in the middle of an empty sofa. He usually liked the ends, but if he sat in the middle he knew there was less of a chance someone would sit by him. He seemed to have that affect on people, and right now he wasn't in the mood to eat anyone new, so he used his freakish ability to keep people away to his advantage.

Only it didn't work, because Harvey sat down next to him. "I'm not a liar, Mike. You know that."

"I just don't understand why you hang around with me,"

"Hey." Trevor showed up again, taking a seat on the other side of Mike. "Movie's about to start." He lifted an arm and rested it along the back of the couch, right behind Mike, earning a scowling glare from Harvey.

X

"I'm fucking tired." Mike said when they got back to their room.

"You must be," Harvey observed, "you only say 'fuck' when you're dead tired. If you say it again, I'll think you're already asleep."

"Why did we stay up till three in the morning the night before classes start?" Mike asked.

"Because you needed to socialize."

"Yeah. A load of good that did. The only person that talked to me was Trevor."

"It's a start."

"A rotten one."

"Because you're a spoilsport."

"Because I'm an untouchable."

Harvey rolled his eyes. "Since when are you Hindu?"

"You know what I mean, Harvey!" Mike jumped into his bed. "I don't know why you insist on trying to make people like me. No one ever does."

"I like you."

Mike laughed. "Nice try."

"What's wrong, Mike? You've always been a bit lacking in the confidence area, but it's worse lately. Why?"

"What do I have to be confident about?"

"You're the smartest person I know. That's something."

"Yeah, something that's made me the target of bullies everywhere."

"So? Who gives a damn about them? _You__'__re_ what's important, no those assholes."

"Right."

"Ooh, sarcasm, how unique."

"Shut up, Harvey. I have no idea why you protected me that first day, and I have no idea why you still protect me now. All I know is that for some reason, you're my only friend, and I'm sorry. I hate that you spend all your time with me when you'd be better off somewhere else, but I can't seem to make it without you, so you're stuck with me."

"Stuck with you?"

"Yeah, but only until I can figure out a way to make you unstuck."

"Mike..."

But he didn't hear Harvey's voice. Despite all the thoughts going through his head, Mike fell asleep.

**A/N: Sorry this is a bit short... I'm tired as hell lol. Does anyone else become extremely foul-mouthed when they're running on empty?**


	4. Expendables

Chapter 4 - Expendables (Posted 1 December 2011)

"So," Harvey said, "you and Trevor are getting pretty close." They were at dinner, a week or so having passed since the movie night.

Mike shrugged. "I guess."

"You guess? I've hardly seen you since you started hanging around with him."

"What are you talking about? We're in class together every day."

"Yeah, but that's class, Mike." Harvey rebutted. "I'm talking about outside of classes. I know we're here to learn, but I thought we'd get to spend at least some time together."

"You want to spend time with me?"

"Of course I do. Why would you even ask me that?"

Mike shrugged again. "I don't know. I just thought... well we always hang out together. I thought maybe you wanted some time to yourself. I was just trying to give you some space."

"Mike, I need space from my overprotective mother. I need space from homework and chores. But I never need space from you. You're my best friend, I expect you to be in my space."

"I may be your best friend, but I'm not your only friend."

"You might as well be." Harvey argued. "You're the friend I like to be with. You're the one I go to when I need something. You're the one I care about keeping. All the others are just random people who like me because they think everyone likes me. They're expendable. You're not."

Mike gaped at him. "You've never said any of this before."

"I didn't know I had to," Harvey said, although that wasn't completely true. Which is why he continued, "Okay, so maybe I should have said something before, but honestly, I didn't know you needed me to tell you you're my friend. I thought it was pretty obvious."

"So you really don't mind being with me all the time?"

"What? No. Trust me, if I minded it, you'd know."

Mike's lips twitched into an almost-smile. "Thanks."

"And I'm glad you're making other friends. But that Trevor... there's something off about him."

"Ugh, Harvey..." Mike rolled his eyes, "not this again. Trevor is cool."

"I've heard things about him."

"Rumors."

"Even if I heard it from his own friends?"

"When did you talk to them?"

"When you were with Trevor."

"Oh..."

"They said he sells drugs, Mike."

"So?"

"So, I don't want you getting mixed up in that."

"I haven't gotten mixed up in anything."

"Yet," Harvey argued. "I'm telling you, he's bad news. You shouldn't be friends with someone like him."

"So that's what this whole thing is about? Not you finally admitting that you care about me, but just you telling me how much you hate Trevor."

"That's not what this was at all."

"Yeah. Right. Trevor is a nice guy. There's finally another human being who sees me as a person rather than a punching bag. Why can't I just have this?"

"He's going to hurt you. I know he is, I can feel it. Why won't you just trust me on this? I'm the one that protects you, remember? That's all I'm trying to do here."

"I think you're wrong. I'll show you you're wrong, Harvey." Mike stood up, carrying his tray away and exiting the dining hall.


	5. Late Night Activities

**A/N: This is the last chapter! I realize it's kind of rushed and blah. I had had a bit more planned for this, but I really didn't know how to work it in without it seeming unnecessary. So I just started writing what I could and it brought me to the end. I hope you enjoyed the rest of it a little.**

Chapter 5 - Late Night Activities (Posted 22 December 2011)

"Another late night?" Harvey asked as Mike stumbled into the room around three in the morning.

"Yeah." Mike said grumpily. "What of it?"

Harvey squinted in the dark. He couldn't see him, but he could sense that something was wrong. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah... I'm... fine, I think."

"You think?" Harvey quickly hopped out of his bed and flicked the lights on. He saw Mike swaying as he tried to dress in his pajamas. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing." Mike shakes his head excessively. "Just leave me alone."

"Are you drunk?"

"Drunk, high, what's the difference? It's not like you care."

Harvey grabbed Mike's arm both to steady him and hold on to something himself lest he lose his grip on reality. "What did you say?"

"Oops..."

"Don't you 'oops' me, Mike. Tell me you didn't just say what I thought you said."

"Harvey, it's not that bad..."

"Not that bad?" Harvey was furious. "What did you use?"

"Just pot, no big deal."

"No big deal, sure. Except that it's illegal. Or did you miss that in your studies, Mr. Pre-Law?"

"Shut up, Harvey," Mike said timidly.

"Not to mention that it's a goddam waste, Mike. Even if you didn't have a superhuman brain, that stuff is no good! Who gave it to you?"

"Trevor."

"Wow, big surprise there. Is tonight the first time you smoked?"

Mike shook his head, too unstable to try and form any words.

Harvey stilled himself and took some deep breaths in an effort to calm himself. "What happened to trying to prove me wrong about him?"

"It went down the shitter when he kissed me and offered me a blunt, that's what happened."

"...He what?"

"He kissed me." Mike repeated. "And told me that no matter how hard I was trying to hide it, he could tell I was gay, and that there was no use even attempting to cover it up."

"But, you're not..."

"But I am." Mike whispered, falling to his knees with his head on his bed. He cried into his arms on the sheets.

"Mike..." Harvey stepped forward, wanting to comfort him but not sure how. He never hated anyone more than he hated himself in that moment for not being able to take care of his best friend.

"That's why I took the blunt, Harvey. I couldn't take it anymore. This whole charade... I've been lying to myself, hoping it would go away. But it won't. I'm stuck like this. That's why it bothered me so much in school, because as desperate as I was to appear otherwise, everyone could see the truth. And you know how I remember things, I just... even though we're graduated, they don't stop mocking me. In my head, in my dreams... So I smoked the weed Trevor offered me, and it made me forget for a little while. And once I remembered, I realized how disappointed you would be in me, and that hurt like a fucking bullet to the chest and so how did I fix it?"

"More pot." Harvey guessed in a soft voice.

"More pot," Mike confirmed with a squeak. "He asked me to room with him, you know. He asked me to request a room change. And I thought about it too. I figured I'd disappointed you, and then when you found out why, you'd be disgusted."

"You're wrong." Harvey said, something inside him forcing him to join Mike on his knees and place a hand on Mike's shoulder. "I'm not disgusted. I told you, you are my _best_ friend. I may not care about anyone, but you're not just anyone. You're Mike."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mike half-turned to face him.

"I didn't want it to happen like this... but..." Harvey made a snap decision to push forward and connected his lips to Mike's. He was a little unsure at first, afraid of how Mike would react. But within seconds their lips were moving against each other. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you'd hate me." Mike said, shocked.

"What made you think that?"

"I... I don't know..."

"Mike, I didn't want you to find out this way and maybe I should have told you sooner but I wasn't ready... and I'm sorry."

"For what? What weren't you ready for?" Mike couldn't stop the tiny tears that formed in the corners of his eyes.

"To tell you that I've been in love with you since the moment I saw you. That the second I saw you, I was enraged at the bully beating you up. And I devoted my life to protecting you, and I've been trying so hard to make you see that no matter how much it seems like no one cares about you, _I_do. I'm sorry I've done such a horrible job. And I'm sorry that while all this time I've been trying to protect you from everyone else, you've been trying to protect me from yourself."

"You don't love me, Harvey," Mike tried to push him away, but Harvey only held him tighter.

"Yes, I do." Harvey promised. "I'm just not good at saying it. Or showing it for that matter. I still don't know if I'm ready but it's obvious you need me and frankly I don't care if I'm ready or not. All that matters is that you know I'm here for you. Unconditionally."

"You _can__'__t_ love me. It doesn't make any sense..."

"How does it not make sense? You're the only person I spend any time with, you're the only person I make sacrifices for, and you're the only person I've let into my life. I love you, and I..."

"It doesn't make sense because I love you too." he whispered, sniffing. "Things like this don't happen to me, Harvey. I realized I was never going to be with you a long time ago."

Harvey's hold around Mike tightened even further. "But you can be with me," he breathed into Mike's ear. "I should have seen it. I know you better than anyone. I was just so busy trying to protect you and hide my own feelings... God, Mike, I'm so sorry." He leaned in and kissed Mike again, feeling Mike's arms around his neck and tasting his tears in their kiss.

"I'm sorry, Harvey."

"You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I'm sorry I'm not as strong as you."

"I never asked you to be. I did my best to be strong enough for the both of us."

"You really... feel like that about me?"

"Have I ever lied to you?"

Mike shook his head. "No."

"There's your answer, then." Harvey kissed him a few more times before standing them up.

"But I still don't understand... what could possibly make you love me? I..."

"You still don't realize how special you are, do you? You are the most amazing person I've ever met. So open and gentle... the exact opposite of me. We balance each other out, Mike. You're the light to my darkness, the sweet to my salty. And I'm going to make you see that if it's the last thing I do."

"I don't deserve you."

"Yeah, you deserve a hundred times better. But I love you, and as much as I'd like to be the Prince Charming who'll let you be with whoever you want as long as you're happy, I can't be that guy. You're_mine_. And I don't care how far we go, as long as I've got you with me."

Mike chuckled through his tears. "And you said you weren't good at these kinds of things," he jibed.

Harvey gave a breathy laugh before hugging Mike closer. "Just so we're clear, no more pot."

"I promise."

"And no more Trevor."

"I swear."

Harvey pushed Mike down onto his bed, kissing him as he climbed on top of him. "So, how many times did Trevor kiss you?"

"A few."

Harvey gave an angry growl. "Did he touch you?"

Mike gulped. "He might have."

Another snarl passed through Harvey's lips. "Did you sleep with him?"

"No." Mike said quietly. "He tried, but... I told him I wasn't ready."

Harvey's lips released Mike's as he pulled back slightly to look at him. "Are you ready now?"

"Not for him."

This earned a little smirk from Harvey. "What about for me?"

"I've been ready for you for five years."


End file.
